. . . And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love. ~ I Corinthians 13
Calling all writers! From my Cup of Comfort mailbag:
Love is central to our lives. One of the great journeys we take is the search for that special someone. We have all experienced the initial butterflies when we fall in love, the deepening of that affection as we pass the years together, and the challenges that couples go through as life, well, happens. This quest is exhilarating, profound, and full of sincere and honest stories. Which Cup of Comfort and REDBOOK would love to hear.
The publishers of Cup of Comfort and REDBOOK Magazine are pleased to announce the Your Love Story Contest!
From now until April 20th, readers are encouraged to enter their 1,000 – 2,000 word true love stories. Topics can range from falling in love, celebrating love, experiences that couples have overcome, and more, as long as the love story speaks to the joys or challenges of a romantic partnership.
For more details, click HERE for contest rules, how to submit, prize money.
A Woman Inspired is hosting a new conference, January 25-29, 2010 dedicated to nurturing creativity and efficient living:
“Have you been in touch with your inner creative diva? Do you want to learn to express yourself through paint mediums, culinary masterpieces, vibrant rooms or maybe through your own life as the canvas? Well, you can get inspired here.
Whether you feel stuck in a rut or just don’t know where to begin we can help. I’m confident that many of you have a pile of unfinished projects or maybe put off doing things simply because you feel you don’t have the time. We have all been there and can definitely relate. We would like you help get some momentum going so that you can begin to create and design no matter what your canvas preference is.”
You’ll learn how to:
* develop your God given talents and gifts
* push past creative blocks
* further your education in the area of your choice
* be more productive
* be more focused
* let your light shine!
Remember, all A Woman Inspired conferences are entirely online. No travel is required, you can listen in wearing your jammies, and MP3’s are included with the cost of your ticket!
Find more info and register here!
A Cup of Comfort® is a bestselling anthology series featuring uplifting true stories about the experiences and relationships that inspire and enrich our lives. These slice-of-life stories are written by people from all walks of life and provide unique personal insights into powerful universal truths.
We are extending a call for submissions for the following books:
A Cup of Comfort® for Couples:
Stories that celebrate what it means to be in love:
“It is said that love works in mysterious ways. And this anthology will reveal the many mysteries as well as the inner workings of true love. Of course, being a “happy couple” involves more than being in love, and making a romantic relationship work takes more than romance. So this book will feature uplifting true stories with a balanced mix of tones—romantic, poignant, humorous—and on a wide range of topics: From falling in love to the secrets of lasting love. From celebrating special moments between you to overcoming bumps in your relationship. From experiences that brought you closer together to experiences that threatened to tear you apart. From endearing rituals to challenging changes. From sparkling new love to glorious golden love. Or any other topic that speaks to the joys, the challenges, and/or the nature of a romantic partnership that works for you. Narrative essays preferred.”
Story Length: 1000–2000 words.
Submit Your Story HERE
Call for Submission Deadline: April 20, 2010
Read more at Call for Submissions
Cup of Comfort site
“I really think that cleaning up in between projects is a great way to also clean the palette; so to speak. It helps to organize your thoughts and focus on what you are doing next.” ~ Joanna Figueroa, fabric designer, featured in Where Women Create
Worked on my creative space this week. Mr. G. put together another tabletop area for me to spread my beads. Designing jewelry is such fun when I’m not writing! I also save old Mary Englebreit calendars. Framed a few of her prints from the calendars this week to hang in a collage in the corner. Her art inspires and delights me!
What does your workspace look like? Does it inspire you? It should! Found a magazine to help with that:
Enjoy!
“A work of art introduces us to emotions which we have never cherished before. Great works produce rather than satisfy needs by giving the world fresh cravings.” ~ Abraham Heschel
I’ve been pondering the works of Vincent van Gogh. Long ago, I criticized the man’s work. So ordinary, I thought. I didn’t get it. Having missed his heart, I walked away, unaroused by what he shared. But it wasn’t Vincent’s fault. I was young, naive. What did I know? Now, the more I learn about the man, the more his longings speak to me. I see sorrow lurking behind his landscapes:
“There may be a great fire in our soul, yet no one ever comes to warm himself at it, and the passers-by see only a wisp of smoke coming through the chimney, and go along their way.” Vincent van Gogh
When we encounter a work of art, what do we see? Are we paying attention?
Before Van Gogh became a painter, he read the Scriptures, wanting “to sow the words of the Bible” to the working-class people, as Ken Gire shares in his insightful book, Windows of the Soul. Van Gogh said himself: “I read it daily but I should like to know it by heart and to view life in the light of its words.”
Vincent had a passion to minister to the poor and the downtrodden. He longed to become a pastor like his father, but the religious powers-that-be prevented him from pursuing a theological education. They viewed him as eccentric, fanatical, unsubmissive - and pushed him aside with a lay ministry role. But he gladly lived among the coal miners, visiting their sick, praying with them, binding up their wounds, sharing the gospel, planting hope and encouragement wherever he could. He wrote his brother, Theo, that he wanted to draw them one day “so that those unknown or little-known types would be brought before the eyes of the people.”
But his position as evangelist was soon terminated, and according to Gire, he left angered and embittered at age 27. It makes sense that he sketched the peasant woman sewing, farmers eating around a table, and women kneeling in prayer. He loved these people. Gire describes At Eternity’s Gate with Vincent’s own words: “In this print I have tried to express what seems to me one of the strongest proofs of the existence…of God and eternity - certainly in the infinitely touching expression of such a little old man, which he himself is perhaps unconscious of, when he is sitting quietly in his corner by the fire. At the same time, there is something precious, something noble, which cannot be destined for worms.”
By all accounts, Van Gogh suffered with mental illness. Over his lifetime, he grew distant and anguished and despairing. No wonder. He felt rejected much of his life and struggled with depression, possibly bipolar. Had he lived in this day and age, with medication and treatment, surely he would have enjoyed a more robust life, painting well into his old age.
“How sad life must have been for him,” Gire tells us. “To feel so deeply, to want to communicate those feelings so passionately, and yet to have people stand off at a distance, shake their heads, and walk away. Eventually his physical, spiritual, mental, and emotional states all deteriorated.”
I wish it weren’t so. But now I understand. Van Gogh’s life may not be a perfect model for us but you have to admit, he saw things in people we often miss. That, maybe more than his art, was the gift. I read each of his paintings with great interest now, searching for the man, empathizing with the longings of his soul. Whatever critics say, I’ll remember him by this quote:
“Christ is more of an artist than the artists; he works in the living spirit and the living flesh; he makes men instead of statues.” ~ Vincent van Gogh
“A creative mess is better than tidy idleness.”
Atlanta’s flooding rains beat hard on the Gaines cottage this week but, thankfully, we only suffered a little wet carpet.
Meanwhile, I’m sorting and organizing my stash of beads and “findings” - sweet treasure from the Bead Show. God provides us so much beauty in this world; I’m only beginning to discover it!
Drawn to the world of semi-precious stones, I’ve added to my collection some luscious pink agate, cool aqua amazonite, dark green adventurine, and a bit of unikite - pretty coral and olive-colored beads. Apparently, it pays to visit the last hour of the day for such finds. A vendor, eager to pack his supplies, offered reduced prices on the most gorgeous rondelle-shaped crystals. My eyes popped while bracelets danced in my head!
So I’ve a lot on my mind this week, praying for Atlanta, organizing my bead studio, looking for an Etsy/Artfire banner design, catching up the blogs, and preparing to launch this home business. Also, Mr. G. returns soon for his first PSA test since prostate cancer surgery. Praying he’ll be well because it was a long, hard summer. Once things seem a little more settled I’ll resume work on my book.
Tell me, what creative outlets stir your heart besides writing?
